2012 Build Challenge VOTING -- Pick your 3 favorites

Finally here it is, the chance to vote for your favorites in the 2012 Build Challenge.

This year you get to vote for your 3 favorite builds. Once the voting is concluded in one week the winners will be announced in order of their vote tallies -- 1st, 2nd and 3rd Place.

The voting criteria is easy this year -- vote for what you consider the 3 best guitars. You don't need to consider who makes the best build thread. Who's the funniest. Who is the most talented player in a video or anything like that. Just -- Which THREE of the 49 Entries do you think is the BEST Guitar.

Do not vote until you have reviewed the Build compilation thread (http://www.tdpri.com/forum/2012-tdpri-tele-build-challenge/326839-all-contestants-row-2012-challenge-compilation-thread.html) and see each guitar and the accompanying video.

Thanks and have fun!

Lordy, these guitars are gorgeous... this is NOT easy to vote on!

Good luck to all , what a great bunch of builders this year , and thanks Paul and all who worked to make the challenge this year .

Wow... It's going to take a week to narrow this down to just 3 favorites!

Too hard to vote! My head is going to explode!!!

Too hard to vote! My head is going to explode!!!

^^^^What he said!

Only 3? You must be joking!

There are some truly inspired builds here. Amazing work all around - and that made it REALLY hard to pick only 3.

^^^^What he said!

BEST.... OF..... LUCK........ EVERy.....

http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_zE8CzamN1Y0/SniCWCU2hUI/AAAAAAAAAdc/K8LcusCKhss/s320/gil-head-explode-again.gif

Well it took a long time to go through them all and decide... but I did it.

Good luck to all.

Great work everyone and best of luck to you all. It's been an honor to be a part of it.

It was hard to pick just 3, but its done. Good luck everybody.

I didn't find it that difficult, there were 3 particular guitars that I would pay money to own so those were the choices :mrgreen:

It was tough to limit it to only 3. This was a great year for the build contest. I would be proud to own, let alone build any of the guitars this year. Fabulous work, everyone!

where are the builds?

An inspired and inspiring list of candidates,there can be no losers.

where are the builds?

gadgetfreak,

You can find the compilation of all the (completed) builds here:

http://www.tdpri.com/forum/2012-tdpri-tele-build-challenge/326839-all-contestants-row-2012-challenge-compilation-thread.html
JM

Lots of great guitar builds!
It was a tough call!

Best of luck to all!

I picked 3 but I could have easily increased that to 20...so many great builds.

Nice work everyone.

Dep

Congratulations to everyone! Now I can get back to playing instead of reading all the threads!

No separate polling for beginners?

Gees it was hard picking three. Every thread was inspirational. Congratulations to every participant you are all winners in my book. Thanks also to TDPRI for putting on such a great competition. Easily the best show on the internet as far as I'm concerned.

Well done all!!

No separate polling for beginners?

Yeah, they have their own thread (http://www.tdpri.com/forum/2012-tdpri-tele-build-challenge/327202-2012-build-challenge-best-beginner-voting-pick-your-3-favorites.html).

Just wanted to say to all the builders - your work is inspiring. Absolutely Great Stuff!

Yeah, they have their own thread (http://www.tdpri.com/forum/2012-tdpri-tele-build-challenge/327202-2012-build-challenge-best-beginner-voting-pick-your-3-favorites.html).

Sorry, just found it. :oops:

Man, that voting hurt my heart. 6 I could have done, but 3? Brutal.

I picked my three. A hard choice I would take all of them if I could. Great job guys!

I didn't find it that difficult, there were 3 particular guitars that I would pay money to own so those were the choices :mrgreen:

Yeah, but I had 4...or 5!
My head hurts...

Thank you TDPRI and Paul especially for providing 2 months of fun, good reading, learning and for the entrants a keen new guitar.

Bret

When I was growing up there was a quiet little man next door who made things out of wood. One day he made a guitar, and played it. Then he built a lute and played that. In a neighbourhood where most of the men just drank, he opened my eyes to a world where people could be different, even extraordinary. I have watched these builds with a sense of the same wonder and awe I had back then. It's good to see a few kids featuring in build threads and videos. Besides the beautiful guitars that have been made, I think there will be a few wide-eyed boys and girls who will grow up to build instruments or do something they didn't think possible. Thanks to Paul and all the builders for the wonder and inspiration.

Nice work, gents, all of you!

Man, that was a really hard choice. I could have chosen my 30 favorites...

Man, that was a really hard choice. I could have chosen my 30 favorites...

Yeah, my first list had 12; the "short list" had 8. My "final list" had 5. :lol:

When I was growing up there was a quiet little man next door who made things out of wood. One day he made a guitar, and played it. Then he built a lute and played that. In a neighbourhood where most of the men just drank, he opened my eyes to a world where people could be different, even extraordinary. I have watched these builds with a sense of the same wonder and awe I had back then. It's good to see a few kids featuring in build threads and videos. Besides the beautiful guitars that have been made, I think there will be a few wide-eyed boys and girls who will grow up to build instruments or do something they didn't think possible. Thanks to Paul and all the builders for the wonder and inspiration.

That was really well said W3stie - I feel exactly the same way.

I am truly knocked out by all of the builds. I think they should all win.
Just some absolutely stunning entries. I am going to go through the thread a
couple more times before I vote.

Paul, you are the man. Thanks for your putting this on. This site truly ROX.

When I was growing up there was a quiet little man next door who made things out of wood.

My grandpa was one of those - one of my best childhood memories was visiting his shop and watching him make things (although not guitars).

I never really followed in his footsteps but I felt like I was finally coming close while working on this guitar... the smells and flying sawdust reminded me of his shop, and it was probably only his scary words about how important shop safety is when I was 7 or 8 that stopped me from injuring myself in the process.

(Now that I remember it, his shop was extremely tidy and organized. I've got some work to do!)

Thanks Paul and everyone here for bringing me such a great experience!

Great guitars, very hard to chose three.

However I find the videos do them wrong, the playing and the recording are mostly of very low quality. No offence intended.

Exciting! Its like looking at horse races in slomo...

I've been away so I've missed out on following these build threads, but WOWEEE there's some nice gear in there. Massive congratulations to everybody who completed a build this year, and even those who started and didn't quite get there. Keep it up guys!

Great guitars, very hard to chose three.

However I find the videos do them wrong, the playing and the recording are mostly of very low quality. No offence intended.

Good job it's a build challenge and not a concert recording challenge then eh? I'm sure we'll look forward to your build and video next year. :wink:

If we had to choose only 2 or as much as we wanted this would have been a no brainer!
But Three?????

I didn't vote for the ones I would like to own, but rather the ones most challenging for the particular builder. Some of us were not total beginners, but many had never made a neck before, wired before, whatever... There are certainly many who had the skills to make museum quality guitars and they have again delivered. The innovation by these folks are in a totally different universe than many of us who competed.

It has been inspiring and educational just following the builds. To everyone who finished, you are winners.

Impossible to pick just three. Every time I had to make a decision I felt terrible for knocking someone off the list. In the end, it came down to dice rolls. SO BLAME THE DICE!

Great guitars, very hard to chose three.

However I find the videos do them wrong, the playing and the recording are mostly of very low quality. No offence intended.

No offence taken -- and mine was surely the worst. :cry:

I think many of us did the recording in a great hurry!

I literally did mine a few minutes before the deadline and felt
completely frazzled -- and in addition faced unexpected
problems with audio levels. Believe it or not, I actually play
the guitar. :shock:

Next time (no way I'm not participating next year if I'm able)
I'll make sure that I have time for a decent video.

Yeah, I can increase the quality of my video, but after 30 years, you are probably stuck with my low quality playing.

:mrgreen:

Wow! What a great bunch of guitars after spending a couple of hours going through and watching all the videos and reading build threads. I am so impressed I had to join, I have been a beginner guitar player for about 18 years, I played the heck out of the four open cords I knew. My daughter wanted to play guitar, she started asking when she was 5, she did not let it go she kept asking and asking if she could have a guitar. After a few months of that Santa brought her one for x-mas and grandma got her guitar lessons. She has been playing and taking lessons, her and I both, for a year and a few months and she is getting pretty good.

The videos for most do not represent the guitar very well, although there were some very good and entertaining videos. Kwerk's video was very funny and the guitar is way cool. Another of my favorite guitars and videos was this.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=39jkKOyD59s&list=UUpj8IMsv29MmDq3bfWULgmA&index=2&feature=plcp

Good job to all!

One I was compelled to vote for, though I would be scared to own it...
The other two votes went to the two I wanted the most out of the 4 or 5 that pulled my heart strings.

Many thanks to the one person who voted for me! That certainly makes you unique! (haha).

Might as well get a little weird. My two granddads each had talents. I was very lucky to spend a lot of time around them when I was very young. One was a stiff conservative big guy who was well educated but preferred to frame up homes and build cabinets for houses. He was a marvel to watch. The other was a happy go lucky kind of guy, very dashing, never made a lot of dough but was happy in the midst of a very hard life and grateful for fresh breezes and good food right up till he passed early at 58 with a heart attack.

Now as an old man myself I work at projects, guitars, fences, corrals, lots of things... and I can often FEEL their eyes on me, watching, helping, admiring, requiring that I do my best and smile regardless of how tough it becomes. Seems strange to others but I know they are there.

we now return you to your regularly scheduled programming:)

Many thanks to the one person who voted for me! That certainly makes you unique! (haha).

:lol: I had the same thought. Thanks for the vote. I promise it wasn't me that voted for myself. :lol:

A humble and heartfelt thank you to all the contestants who finished this Challenge. The ocean of talent that flows through this site is absolutely astounding! I love this place...

Anyway, I knew my number one choice a few weeks ago, but the competition for my second and third votes was ridiculous! Great job everyone.

However I find the videos do them wrong, the playing and the recording are mostly of very low quality. No offence intended.



The videos for most do not represent the guitar very well.



The video was not the point of the challenge , the video was just to show the guitar operates properly and holds tune , its all about the build , the real magic and work is in all the threads IMO , not the video :smile:

So happy to hear the pro audio boys will be doing everyones videos. I think I'll look for a ringer to play for me.

as we round the bend into the home stretch a young fella from NZ is a shoulder up... and since there are full build instructions to read... I expect that jockey to do well. Kwerk aok pard, glad to see that... sorry, I'm weak and a sucker for gator hide:oops:.

You mean it was my crappy video that cost me the glory? Next time I promise not to show my face. :mrgreen:

You mean it was my crappy video that cost me the glory? Next time I promise not to show my face. :mrgreen:

Maybe people were disappointed you didn't look much like Bob Ross? :mrgreen:

Yeah, I did my video an hour before the deadline after staying up 36 hours finishing the thing... It's amazing I could speak English and play a few chords.

All I have to say is: holy gwaka-effing-moley. These guitars are incredible. Stijnkenens, my hat is off to you in particular, sir -- great job.

It's a tough call choosing three. There are so many good guitars this year, the bar has certainly been lifted again. Good luck to all the participants.

:lol: I had the same thought. Thanks for the vote. I promise it wasn't me that voted for myself. :lol:


I didn't vote for myself either, so I guess my mom, brother, and sister must have all signed on here while I wasn't looking! :wink:

Thanks everyone, for the votes, encouragement, comments, thoughts, etc. I think this year's build was more enjoyable than last year's, except for a certain non-build related event...

While building this one I was thinking I'd sit our next year, but already I find myself thinking about what I might do for next year's challenge!

My apologies to everyone who I didn't vote for - I think every time I look at the list I reappraise my vote. I think I'd feel better if I'd had about ten votes to play with. Well done to everyone and hopefully I'll be brave enough to enter next year with a few guitars (and pickups ....more hurdles!) under my belt. You've all been very inspirational. Cheers, I'm raising my glass to the computer screen :wink:

The 2012 Build Challenge was what brought me to this site - and kept me coming back. I agree with those who wished we'd been able to vote for many more than three, such is depth of quality across the builds.

God, this is just no fair....
I guess, they should provide some more categories or something... I mean, i definitely can pick 3 particular guitars as a player, but another 3 if I'm giving my vote for a work of art, for most innovatieve guitar, most unconventional guitar … I can go on and on and on…
Maybe someone just needed a better camera, a better amp or a player, go figure

My heart hurts(
Thank you all for letting us see all this

Man, I couldn't believe it going through each build thread, all the guitars I really didn't get a chance to follow, and there are a few cool and innovative ones AGAIN this year...

Congratulations to you all who finished, I know how difficult it is to get it done in the time frame, and my hat goes off to you all...

The video was not the point of the challenge , the video was just to show the guitar operates properly and holds tune , its all about the build , the real magic and work is in all the threads IMO , not the video :smile:

+1. I voted for the guitars I wanted to play, other than my own; apparently, six people checked the Picton box by mistake. :wink: Thanks, though, and cheers.

I was a bit disappointed not to be able to vote for igork at the end; aside from getting done in only six days or so, I thought his build quality was right up there with the best in the competition. Certainly his skills are top-notch.

Fantastic builds, overall. I really do feel like the voting and prizes are an afterthought; it's the camaraderie and the threads themselves that are the real prizes.

Good grief!!! I just watched all the videos. I am having a very difficult time settling on three. Every build that was completed is nice, and most of them would positively STAND OUT brilliantly in any music store.

Not to toot my own horn, but the beginner guitars would compete pretty well in the overall competition also. How to choose??

I didn't vote yet because Gearhead1972 was left off the ballot. He's losing votes!

He's in the beginner bracket. You need to go to that thread

Wow, Like y'all said... Picking only 3 weren't easy... Congrats and appreciation to all!

:lol: I had the same thought. Thanks for the vote. I promise it wasn't me that voted for myself. :lol:

It does seem to make each vote more meaningful.
Just think of Solomon with all those wives! (haha)

Cheers!

Really difficult to make those three choices. I really feel sorry for the panel of judges who must make the final choice. No matter which way they go, there's gonna be a hard row to hoe, there.

Really difficult to make those three choices. I really feel sorry for the panel of judges who must make the final choice. No matter which way they go, there's gonna be a hard row to hoe, there.

What do you mean by "panel of judges"?

What do you mean by "panel of judges"?

Was wondering about that one myself :neutral:

Really difficult to make those three choices. I really feel sorry for the panel of judges who must make the final choice.

There is no "panel of judges". Top three vote getters win. Simple as that.

Most votes -- 1st Place
2nd most votes -- 2nd Place
3rd most votes -- 3rd Place

There is no "panel of judges". Top three vote getters win. Simple as that.

Most votes -- 1st Place
2nd most votes -- 2nd Place
3rd most votes -- 3rd Place
Cool! I must have confused discussion of the rules with the actual rules themselves. I was under the impression that the membership would pick their three favorites, and then it would be up to a final panel of judges chosen who would make the final call.
I like the way we are doing it better. Sorry for creating any confusion, and, carry on!

I am in awe of the talent that abounds here. Good luck to all, and thanks for sharing your talents!

It does seem to make each vote more meaningful.
Just think of Solomon with all those wives! (haha)

Cheers!

So true. I'm just pleased to have received a vote among so many fabulous instruments. I'm also just happy to have a great new guitar to play. I've enjoyed it so far and have even had a couple of guys who play really well try it out and they both said that it is great. That's a pretty good reward for me.

The video was not the point of the challenge , the video was just to show the guitar operates properly and holds tune , its all about the build , the real magic and work is in all the threads IMO , not the video :smile:

Actually, that's not exactly what many of the builders were doing in their videos. Show off the features - DON'T TALK ABOUT THE PLACES WHERE THEY SCREWED UP - play a few chords and maybe a few riffs to show that their entry plays in tune and the controls work and they're done. 2-3 minutes tops. After that its just REALLY boring and costing them votes - at least in my case. The ones that didn't put me to sleep got a peak at their build threads but with all the chit-chat to wade through it wasn't very helpful in most cases.

In spite of that it was really hard picking just 3. I started off thinking that I would just pick the ones that I'd want to buy, if I could, but that was more than half of the entries right there. Then I tried to get scientific and categorize the entries into classic design, unique design and just flat out cool. After that I just closed my eyes and kept clicking until I managed to hit 3 entries . . . :wink:

So many talented builders, and inspired builds, love watching this stuff!!

The competition is stiff this year.
I keep forgetting which 3 I voted for and have to check to see which names are in italics.

Congrats to everyone who finished, you are all winners.

I just wanted to chime in here and say congratulations to everyone. Sorry that I'vd kind of dropped off the forum for a little while. After being completely consumed for 2 solid months, I need to back off a little to regain some balance hehe.

I'll still be around, just not all day... every day :razz:

Could someone please give Pulaifaz a vote??

I don't mean to ruffle any feathers here but there's something wrong when an entry like vintage65's doesn't have more votes. Have people missed the fact that he built his guitar from steel and machined his own Bigsby?

......http://i83.photobucket.com/albums/j297/Extra71/DSC09453.jpg

I don't mean to ruffle any feathers here but there's something wrong when an entry like vintage65's doesn't have more votes. Have people missed the fact that he built his guitar from steel and machined his own Bigsby?

......

That was one of my 3!!!

I don't mean to ruffle any feathers here but there's something wrong when an entry like vintage65's doesn't have more votes. Have people missed the fact that he built his guitar from steel and machined his own Bigsby?

......http://i83.photobucket.com/albums/j297/Extra71/DSC09453.jpg
I concur. However, the criteria for voting is not who did the best job, or who built the most challenging build, or who was the most inventive or innovative. It was simply "vote for the three guitars you like the best".
Unfortunately, in a contest where the viewers of this forum will be allowed to pick the winners, popularity will win out over every other consideration(for the most part) every time. Those members whose threads are followed the most will be the ones who will get the most votes, by and large. Not a slam at whomever wins this thing. The three builders in the running are all very accomplished builders, and the guitars are first rate.
This is one of the reasons I incorrectly assumed that there would be a final panel of builders who frequent this site which would eventually decide the winner, as was part of the discussion at the beginning of this Challenge, if I recall correctly.
Having said all that, what can you do?
Paul could bend over backward so much that he'd physically be twisted in knots, trying to accommodate every variable, and there would still be someone who would be unhappy with how things turned out. At least done by popular vote, we, the forum as a whole, have only ourselves to blame if we don't like the outcome. I'm satisfied with the rules as they are.

As a recent newcomer to this forum, I would agree with gitlvr. It was my understanding that a popular vote by members thru this website would decide the winner (s). Sounds like a plan.

I don't mean to ruffle any feathers here but there's something wrong when an entry like vintage65's doesn't have more votes. Have people missed the fact that he built his guitar from steel and machined his own Bigsby?

......

Yeah, it was very cool, but what are ya gonna do? You only get 3 votes. The 4th-coolest guitar gets none of the love.

Yeah, it was very cool, but what are ya gonna do? You only get 3 votes. The 4th-coolest guitar gets none of the love.

Err, everyone gets 3 votes on two different polls. The big poll, and the beginner poll (http://www.tdpri.com/forum/2012-tdpri-tele-build-challenge/327202-2012-build-challenge-best-beginner-voting-pick-your-3-favorites.html).
That's a total of 6 guitar build votes. :mrgreen:

nothing wrong about being 6th of 49 with three day voting left


I love the great pumpkin

Err, everyone gets 3 votes on two different polls. The big poll, and the beginner poll (http://www.tdpri.com/forum/2012-tdpri-tele-build-challenge/327202-2012-build-challenge-best-beginner-voting-pick-your-3-favorites.html).
That's a total of 6 guitar build votes. :mrgreen:

Umm, but you don't get to vote for vintage65's guitar in the beginner poll. :mrgreen:x2

My apologies to everyone who I didn't vote for - I think every time I look at the list I reappraise my vote. I think I'd feel better if I'd had about ten votes to play with. Well done to everyone and hopefully I'll be brave enough to enter next year with a few guitars (and pickups ....more hurdles!) under my belt. You've all been very inspirational. Cheers, I'm raising my glass to the computer screen :wink:

Cheers, man!

I don't mean to ruffle any feathers here but there's something wrong when an entry like vintage65's doesn't have more votes. Have people missed the fact that he built his guitar from steel and machined his own Bigsby?

......http://i83.photobucket.com/albums/j297/Extra71/DSC09453.jpg

And I'm sure the fact that it's orange has got nothing to do with it....

It was really difficult to vote this year - only 3 votes to allocate, 5 fiddles I personally want, and a whole slew of great builds.... It's a fool who looks for logic in the voting of TDPRI's build challenge.

Great guitars, very hard to chose three.

However I find the videos do them wrong, the playing and the recording are mostly of very low quality. No offence intended.

None taken. You should know I wouldn't have even recorded a video if it hadn't been a requirement :-).

Unfortunately, in a contest where the viewers of this forum will be allowed to pick the winners, popularity will win out over every other consideration(for the most part) every time. Those members whose threads are followed the most will be the ones who will get the most votes, by and large. Not a slam at whomever wins this thing. The three builders in the running are all very accomplished builders, and the guitars are first rate.

Actually, I have been surprised that some of the most popular (in terms of thread views) have not done as well as might be thought.

This is one of the reasons I incorrectly assumed that there would be a final panel of builders who frequent this site which would eventually decide the winner, as was part of the discussion at the beginning of this Challenge, if I recall correctly.
Having said all that, what can you do?
Paul could bend over backward so much that he'd physically be twisted in knots, trying to accommodate every variable, and there would still be someone who would be unhappy with how things turned out. At least done by popular vote, we, the forum as a whole, have only ourselves to blame if we don't like the outcome. I'm satisfied with the rules as they are.
There is, of course, going to be a difference between a viewer who is basing the vote on the end result, rather than having read through all the threads. It was hard enough keeping up with the threads going through, so I can't imagine anyone reading them all to make a choice, though perhaps people will have a shortlist and then read all those threads.

It would be interesting to know the results at the end if the votes of only those who entered into the contest in the first place (even if they did not subsequently complete for whatever reason). That would be sort of a "peer view". Not as a prize or anything, just to know.
As said, doesn't matter what rules are in place, it wouldn't be the best. Personally I would have liked a top five rather than three, but that is just me.

This is one of the reasons I incorrectly assumed that there would be a final panel of builders who frequent this site which would eventually decide the winner, as was part of the discussion at the beginning of this Challenge, if I recall correctly.

Hey Mike,

I'm not sure that was ever discussed here. I know last years was simply by popular vote as well. I think you may be confusing it with the OLF build challenge going on.

Jack, we also had people build guitars out of concrete, popsicle sticks, stained glass... Vintage's guitar is absolutely beautiful. It's one that I would love to own, but there have been quite a few guitars made from metal already, so the medium wasn't terribly ground-breaking. I say that with NO intention of taking anything away from Vintage's build. As a matter of fact, I think I actually voted for him. While I understand your enthusiasm, lets not forget that others here put just as much work into their guitars and are just as deserving of votes.

Hey Mike,

I'm not sure that was ever discussed here. I know last years was simply by popular vote as well. I think you may be confusing it with the OLF build challenge going on.

That is a distinct possibility, since I originally entered that as well, and then had to withdraw. I can't find the rules discussion thread, but it doesn't really matter in the end. It's a moot point anyway. There were a lot of things discussed that didn't make it into the final rules for this Challenge. That's why things were discussed openly. So that Paul could come up with what he considered the best way to go about this. Whichever way he decided to do this, I'd be willing to bet that these Challenges every year are a boatload of work and a lot of headache for him, and the people who may be helping him. I'm just happy that he still chooses to do this every year. It's been a ton of fun!

I don't mean to ruffle any feathers here but there's something wrong when an entry like vintage65's doesn't have more votes. Have people missed the fact that he built his guitar from steel and machined his own Bigsby?



Jack,
Don't you think this is kind of ironic considering all the other guitars that did not win in 2010 for the same reason... the popular vote...

In my opinion, 2009 was the only fairly judged contest.

Those members whose threads are followed the most will be the ones who will get the most votes, by and large. Not a slam at whomever wins this thing.

Actually, only three of the 8 builds getting the most votes,
were in the 8 most-viewed threads.

Some of the top vote-getters were quite low in terms of
thread views, ranking in the mid 20's.

Not that I'm watching the voting or anything. :oops:

I don't mean to ruffle any feathers here but there's something wrong when an entry like vintage65's doesn't have more votes. Have people missed the fact that he built his guitar from steel and machined his own Bigsby?

Indeed a beautiful guitar and very cool metal work.

Voting on vintage65's beautiful entry could be affected by
the fact that his entry in last year's challenge was
also metal -- the novelty factor wasn't as high this year.

We are lucky to have people like vintage65 participating here.

Actually, only three of the 8 builds getting the most votes,
were in the 8 most-viewed threads.

Some of the top vote-getters were quite low in terms of
thread views, ranking in the mid 20's.

Not that I'm watching the voting or anything. :oops:
True, but the flaw in your logic is that the number of responses or views to a thread do not equal the number of people who viewed said thread. Since some members will and do respond several times to individual threads, and every response counts as a view, it is entirely possible for the most popular build/builder to be one that does not have as many views as another, just more individual views than others(more popular to the members as a whole). There's a difference. The very definition of the winner in a popular vote(which is what this is) is the guy that was most popular. No way to escape that, IMHO.

:oops: guys, I feel honored.

I think in a perfect world, you'd have different categories or classes. Kind of like a car show. Best Mopar, Best Chevy, Best Ford, Best Foreign Car...etc. You might have a best in show too. That of course means more work to set things up and juggle software and numbers I'm sure. If it were easy to do, I'm sure it would have been done that way. We don't have that option, so we should all have fun and watch what happens in the end. It's kind of fun just watching the numbers go down and up.

I have said this before, if you don't go into it expecting to win you won't be disappointed with the results. :-).

just have fun and watch what happens in the end. I have said this before, if you don't go into it expecting to win you won't be disappointed with the results. :-).
My view exactly! I don't go into this trying to win, I do it because it's really a ton of fun! I think also that's one of the reasons I prefer the name "Build Challenge" as opposed to "Build Contest". It's the challenge of building the guitar in the time frame allotted, as well as the fact that you've joined with a bunch of other guys trying to do the same thing.
As for winning, I already have. This guitar is my best work to date, and I built my dream Tele, the one I've always wanted, alongside a great group of other builders I both respect and admire. I also learned what I was capable of in 2 month's time, with the proper attitude and planning. Not possible to lose, if you look at it that way.

:oops: guys, I feel honored.

As you should be! The more I look at the pic of your guitar,
the more I think that it was daring to use gold hardware with
the orange finish. The gold is a sort of orange, and it almost
clashes with the orange body.

The gold is a sort of orange, and it almost
clashes with the orange body.

Tell it to Gretsch

......http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v208/jwells393/NewAlbum2/DSC02840a-1.jpg

As far as popularity vs. Voting goes, my votes ended up going to guitars that I really didn't notice until the compilation thread went up. I just wish I had managed to finish on time...

Well, I'm more than happy with my 4 votes, :cool::smile:
Look out Kwerk I'm right on your tail!!!:lol:

First run through the entries narrowed my picks down to 7 choices... A second look and I had narrowed it down to 9... DOH!!!

Went through them again and forced myself to choose just 3!

Good luck to all the entries!

Tell it to Gretsch


Good point. So maybe not quite as daring as I thought.

I know you like orange, Jack. Do you like the orange/gold
combo?

guitarbuilder> The strong majority have voiced clearly that they prefer a single #1 winner regardless of the variety of builds... 6 string, 12 string, scale differences, Gibson overlays etc... whch IMHO dooms the process to a very limited number of entries and the voting eventually becomes difficult because many quality pieces are not given any due. BUT,on the other hand like several have voiced... we are darned lucky to even have a challenge available, and we like to KISS so this is the result.

I have vowed to try to get healthy enough against some long odds to participate again and God willing I will do that, and play by whatever rules are provided. I even have a guitar in mind, which is harder for me because I do not need or even want any more guitars. I do want the enjoyment of building another keen piece so there is reward.

I will give away a maybe good idea for someone to ponder because I'll not use it... a guitar embracing a brand loyalty... i.e. the Coke-a-Caster, or maybe a (god forbid) Applecaster. Fender did a SoCal Speed shop set Tele and Strat one year and it was FANTASTIC, folks loved it.

I have a lot of welding and fabrication time, Jack is right on, what Vintage65 did is a truly fine feat and it sounded real good too. The clear explaination and I'm sure you will agree if you think about it is>>>> the VOTER is a fickle beast:twisted:

ps: in 2011 I obviously should have won... oh well.

Choosing three makes it even harder, there is one favourite, and then.... 29 second favourites...? Really picking one is easy, who I picked for second & third really is what stumped me. I kept going back and forth on numerous builds, changing my vote, then not pushing the button and changing it again.

Ya know, it's not that I only (so far) got 30 votes, it's that I'm stuck right next to Kwerk with (so far) 193,000 or whatever. :mrgreen:

Seriously, nobody should get bent if their favorite didn't win, or in their opinion got dissed or whatever. Hell if you really care put your money where your mouth is and PM your favorite with a fair offer. You never know
(PS, this doesn't apply to me, I'm keepin' it!).

Just wanted to chime in here and comment that in the past Challenge's there was only one vote for each judging category. I simplified it to one category of judging this year. Our software has only two choices: I could have made it unlimited -- vote for as many as you want OR vote for one. Instead, I decided to modify the software to allow for a set number of multiple votes.

And, in thinking about how to do this I chose 3 votes because there are 3 places.

Looking back on it, I think I could have made it vote for 5 and it would have worked just fine. But at the time, my logic was - 3 wining places = three votes.

I think it's also possible in the future to have a runoff vote -- having the top 10 or 15 move forward to a second round of voting.

But hey, it's all a work in progress right now. Seeing what works and learning what doesn't.

Just wanted to chime in here and comment that in the past Challenge's there was only one vote for each judging category. I simplified it to one category of judging this year. Our software has only two choices: I could have made it unlimited -- vote for as many as you want OR vote for one. Instead, I decided to modify the software to allow for a set number of multiple votes.

And, in thinking about how to do this I chose 3 votes because there are 3 places.

Looking back on it, I think I could have made it vote for 5 and it would have worked just fine. But at the time, my logic was - 3 wining places = three votes.

I think it's also possible in the future to have a runoff vote -- having the top 10 or 15 move forward to a second round of voting.

But hey, it's all a work in progress right now. Seeing what works and learning what doesn't.

Yep. And I'd hate to be the one to have to decide the rules, or to sort through the mess. I'd have gone postal a long time ago(or cracked under the pressure and gone on vacation in a padded cell).
Thanks again, Paul, for going through this yet again this year. It's greatly appreciated.

None taken. You should know I wouldn't have even recorded a video if it hadn't been a requirement :-).

The video is the closest thing to seeing it in person, the photos are nice but to see the guitar in action is much more satisfying than any picture. When I think of all the hours that went into a build and to put a video up that is of poor audio quality is disappointing, there are a number of videos that the adio was very distorted I can't close it fast enough. I spent some time watching every completed build regardless of video quality if it sounded good I watched the whole video, if it had audio that was distorted I would close it right away. A few of the builders had someone else play the guitar and to see how much they enjoyed playing the guitar was way cool. There was a guy on wheelies video that was an amazing and at the end of the video, after playing the guitar for awhile you can here him say " I love playing this thing ". For me that says a lot about the quality of the guitar. For example, take a squire and a American Strat, if the recording is of poor quality they will both sound bad, take the same two guitars and a good video the quality difference will be a bit more apparent, add a good player and let him express the way the two guitars compare and you get a much clearer understanding why the American Strat is a thousand dollars more expensive.
There are so many nice guitars that were built the videos that were good I watched and the ones that were bad I did not, I am sure that there are many that feel the same, to say the video does not matter, for me it mattered. Good job to all.

The video is the closest thing to seeing it in person, the photos are nice but to see the guitar in action is much more satisfying than any picture. When I think of all the hours that went into a build and to put a video up that is of poor audio quality is disappointing, there are a number of videos that the adio was very distorted I can't close it fast enough...

Do you have to rub it in, neighbor? :lol: Guilty as charged.
Believe me, it wasn't fun putting up an embarrassing video.

I got the most from others threads out of the videos - all of them, and I think I watched all of them. What a crew!!! There's a lot to these challenges than just guitars and it was great to see some of the personality of guitars and people at times. But then again, I'm pretty stiff in my video... recorded after days of building and then an hour of frantic picture taking as soon as I get it all put together... I have to plan better for next year: I'm just glad that I made it to the deadline with about a day to spare.

Really - the videos are great - one just has to appreciate that we've put hundreds of hours into these instruments and a in some cases about as dead tired as you can get by the time we finish 'em. Video/audio quality is nice, but it's not a big deal to me - they are all entertaining for what they are. And, as an artifact of challenge history, I'm not sure if I would want to see them done any different.

If people are basing their votes on the production quality of the videos and ignoring the build process... then we are in serious trouble....:-)

I know you like orange, Jack. Do you like the orange/gold
combo?

I do like the combo. The Paul Waller Gretsch/Tele hybrid is probably my favorite of all Telecasters I've seen. That's probably why I was drawn to vintage65's entry. I didn't follow any of the threads during the building process. I've looked at the compilation thread then researched the ones I liked. That's when I discovered that vintage65 made his of steel. That's when I really got impressed. He not only made it of steel, he did a beautiful job. Look at those F-holes.'

I do like TDPRI's idea of having a run-off vote in future challenges. Since this is a contest of guitar building I don't think a builder's playing ability should have anything to do with the outcome. I feel that in the future, videos should just show that the guitar works. I would suggest that everyone play the same thing ............. Maybe a major scale played in various keys.

My hat is off to all who finished. I gave up and quit the first week.

I don't worry about the videos. The Challenge is hosted in the DIY subforum rather than the Music to Your ears subforum, and that's because it's a "build" challenge rather than a "performance" challenge... or, God forbid, a "video production" challenge.

I get a million times more enjoyment out of reading the threads than I get out of seeing all of us play. JMO, of course.

It sounds like a cliche, but we're all winners because we all (most of us, anyway) came out of this Challenge with an amazing new guitar to enjoy. As for those who didn't participate, it ought to give you some satisfaction to know that the world just sprouted about 50 new teles, each custom-made with love and pride. And that's a great thing.

Good job, Paul. As you say, it's a work in progress... but it works just fine. Keep it up!

I am also amazed at the build and all the hard work that goes into them, I could never build one of any quality. I did not base my choice on the video, the ones I liked I read through the build thread. I felt like i could get a better idea of what the guitar was like and how it might play, and after all those hours of building I know I would want the video to compliment the guitar. You can look at a picture of a race car over and over but it will never give the viewer the feel that the in car video will give. A picture is just that a sliver of the reality of the guitar hearing it rock gets me that much closer to what it is like. If you look at a picture of David Gilmore playing wish you were here, is quite different than listening to the song, and the real deal to watch him play in person.
The very best would be if you fed ex all the guitars to me and let me play with them and to feel how nice they play, I promise I'll send them back :).
There is a lot of talent here I am very impressed with all the builds some just bit more than others.

I voted. I picked 3, and given another chance I might pick three others. Very difficult to choose. This has been such fun! I hope to be able to participate in the next challenge.

As far as the video goes, I was embarrassed to put mine up, but I did enjoy watching all of them. It felt like I was getting to know some of my new friends just a little bit.

And I agree with Flatfive, it is the closest I will get to seeing these guitars in person.

We clearly need to institute the electoral college.....:lol::lol::lol:

Jeez I'm sorry that my video sucks. The guitar truely is better sounding than the video shows. Sounds really good through a nice tube amp.

We clearly need to institute the electoral college.....:lol::lol::lol:

I will throw my hat in the ring for the Texas delegate for the convention. :rolleyes:

I only been able to vote once.....am I wrong in reading that I get 3 votes?

Too hard to pick 3, I thought there were 2 outstanding entries that kept me coming back regularly to look in on their progress and at least another 5 or 6 that were excellent as well.

If people are basing their votes on the production quality of the videos and ignoring the build process... then we are in serious trouble....:-)

I agree.

Paul stipulated in the voting instructions that the requirement was on people to vote based on the guitars they liked the best, not on any facet of video quality. He was deliberately very specific on that subject. If people were lending weight to video/audio/playing quality then not only did they ignore what was asked of them but they also really undermined the builders efforts. The video was simply to prove the guitar was wired correctly and could hold a tune. Beyond that, nothing further should have been judged from the video IMHO, however it may have been presented.

Forgive those of us who wanted to spend a little time talking about the guitar. Bear in mind we lived and breathed it for 2 months, thinking of little else.

Great guitars, very hard to chose three.

However I find the videos do them wrong, the playing and the recording are mostly of very low quality. No offence intended.

The video for me was like the marathon runner collapsing over the line. Just happy to finish :lol:

I was impressed with the production of kwerks video. Someone has some skills in that dept :shock:

Cheers

Next year I am going to try and get Spielberg to shoot my video :)
Sheesh , sorry I don't have better video equippment.
I thought all the videos were fine , the threads were fine , the builds were fantastic , and the voting was fair .

The video was the hardest part of last years challenge for me. My kid and I shot it with a phone. The picture and the sound sucked pretty bad. You couldn't even tell for sure if the guitars was really playable.

I only been able to vote once.....am I wrong in reading that I get 3 votes?

You can vote once, but you can choose three on that one vote.

Jeez I'm sorry that my video sucks. The guitar truely is better sounding than the video shows. Sounds really good through a nice tube amp.

Stevo!
You should not apologize for your video I really got a kick out of it :razz: I think it speaks volumes of you as a person to invite your young friend & neighbor to be involved in presenting your build that you spent so much time and hard work creating (great job btw!)

I think most can agree that one of the biggest benefits of these challenges and the DIY fourm is that they inspire others to try things we may otherwise not have and when a young person is inspired to put down their i-pad or video game and pickup a hunk of wood (or a wheel barrow of cement :razz:)and create something or pickup a guitar and learn to play, then the collective efforts of everyone paid off huge.

This is the first challenge i have ever been involved in for anything and the video was something i dreaded doing I have always had a sort of phobia being videoed for others to see so it was kinda of a personal challenge to just grab a camera in one hand and shoot something unrehearsed , unkempt, dead tired and throw it out there no matter how much a fool i looked. :lol:

thanks Steve. I'm Steve too BTW. Small world with a common name...

I'm glad that you enjoyed the video. He was really quite flattered I think that I asked him to do it. I figured that the guitar itself is what is to be judged so no worries. Besides, I'm up to 2 whole votes now. That's more than I expected to see with the stiff competition around here.

For those criticizing the video quality please post a video you made of yourself with no one to help you or operate the camera playing a guitar you just made from sticks.

While I understand the requirement for the video to show that the guitar works... I think it is unfortunate that many voters just watch the videos and base their votes on that. I have not owned an actual video camera for 15 to 20 years back when the 8mm tape was the next big thing expected to take over VHS-C compact tape. The only way I have to make a video is to use my G2 Android phone. The video is not too bad but the audio is poor and can't take much volume before it clips and breaks up.

I have spent my money on guitars, amps, routers, bandsaws, a drill press and a bunch of Stewmac stuff. I have computer M-audio recording equipment, Rode mics and I can make a CD quality audio recording. I can put the track against some stills in movie maker but I have no idea how to sync video and audio. I did link to a good audio recording as an mp3 and a video with with still pics but that is not the requirement. I don't have much interest in spending money on a video camera to use next year and once a year, if I enter again.

I don't have much interest in winding my own pickups either due to my vision. I have had cataract surgery in both eyes and a detached retina reattached in my right eye. Trying to see that little tiny wire does not seem like a good fit for me since I can buy pickups that work great for very little money.

The builders at the Fender custom shop do not wind their own pickups and neither do most botique builders. Most buyers would rather have a Fralin or Duncan pickup anyway. That seeme like a overly restrictive requirement when we are not even required to make a neck plate with 4 holes in it.

For those criticizing the video quality please post a video you made of yourself with no one to help you or operate the camera playing a guitar you just made from sticks.

Hey, I represent that! :-)

That gives me an idea for next year....a guitar from real branches from fallen trees....!

For those criticizing the video quality please post a video you made of yourself with no one to help you or operate the camera playing a guitar you just made from sticks.

Hey, I represent that! :-)

That gives me an idea for next year....a guitar from real branches from fallen trees....!

Well... Apparently you have a better understanding of the contest than I do... Ash/Rosewood/Nitro gets half as many votes as Popsicle sticks... :mrgreen:

I'm kinda surprised at all this balking at the videos...

Even if the video is decent quality and you then render it at a lower bit rate for an easier upload you still end up with a lower quality video...not sure what the big deal is.

If you don't want to hear people talk about the guitar then skip ahead...if you don't like the playing...shut it off......it's really very simple

if you want to vote for the best playing go for it...if you want to vote for the best video have at it........here I thought we were voting on which guitars we liked the best...

I'm just stoked to have a new #1 out of all of this...building in the context of the challenge no doubt pushed me to be/do better than I probably would have on my own. Seeing some of the masterpieces built here along the past 2 months can't help but push a person to want be better.

I know there were nicer guitars than the 3 I voted for...but I voted for the 3 that really got my attention...for whatever the reason. That's the beauty of it all and why we have so much diversity in the voting...everyone has a different opinion as to what they like or think is cool.
I am completely :shock:shocked:shock: to see my number of votes...apparently there must be some affinity for wraparounds, filtertrons and the color orange...It's humbling to think there are people out there that actually like what you built enough to vote for it. As many have already said...I've totally won this thing!!!

Ash/Rosewood/Nitro gets half as many votes as Popcicle sticks...

I think one needs to come up with something unique if you want votes. Otherwise you're just building a typical Telecaster and we've seen that before.

Perhaps future challenges need more than one category. Typical and unique.

No kidding, one year I came in 3rd with a 'Telecaster' that had a round sound hole and no permanently mounted pickup.

Well... Apparently you have a better understanding of the contest than I do... Ash/Rosewood/Nitro gets half as many votes as Popcicle sticks...

I'm sure that the thought that there is no way this thing is going to hold together or work was bait to watch the build.....:-).

I'm sure that the thought that there is no way this thing is going to hold together or work was bait to watch the build.....:-).

that and the fact that I'm sure most people had never seen a guitar built of craft sticks before...we've all seen rosewood/ash/nitro... people seem to like unique and different...

I'm sure that the thought that there is no way this thing is going to hold together or work was bait to watch the build.....:-).

By the way, still going strong? It was impressive enough, you making a tele out of popsicle sticks; it'll be even more impressive if it's still rock-solid after a year.

I know i'm kinda new here and never got to see how previous build challenges played out but I think its unfortunate that any builder among us should feel compelled to defend their build here on this thread. That's why we have individual build threads that are still open for comment.

We all entered this challenge knowing what the rules were and what the criteria for voting would be, no one held a guns to any ones head or forced us to pick the designs we picked.
For anyone who entered the challenge (whether they made it to final voting or not) to sit here on this thread and criticize a process they willing entered or to single out another's build while the voting is still underway is IMHO in very poor taste and cheapens the spirit of what this was supposed to be about.. :sad:

I really don't care who i piss off saying so but this B.S. should stop until the voting is over , there will be plenty of time to debate the pro's and con's of it all after the fact and on a more appropriate thread. JM2CFWIW

By the way, still going strong? It was impressive enough, you making a tele out of popsicle sticks; it'll be even more impressive if it's still rock-solid after a year.

Yep...it has settled in pretty nicely.

I know i'm kinda new here and never got to see how previous build challenges played out but I think its unfortunate that any builder among us should feel compelled to defend their build here on this thread. That's why we have individual build threads that are still open for comment.

We all entered this challenge knowing what the rules were and what the criteria for voting would be, no one held a guns to any ones head or forced us to pick the designs we picked.
For anyone who entered the challenge (whether they made it to final voting or not) to sit here on this thread and criticize a process they willing entered or to single out another's build while the voting is still underway is IMHO in very poor taste and cheapens the spirit of what this was supposed to be about.. :sad:

I really don't care who i piss off saying so but this B.S. should stop until the voting is over , there will be plenty of time to debate the pro's and con's of it all after the fact and on a more appropriate thread. JM2CFWIW
Where is that "like" button...

Where is that "like" button...

+1

Less than one day left to vote. We've got over 25,000 that have registered on this site, and we'll be lucky to get 1,000 to vote in this build challenge. Hmm.

Most have not voted in the second poll for the Beginner build. My guess is that they did not know about the separate (second) poll. Yikes.

Up until this year, I haven't voted because in previous years I felt that since I had no skin in the game, my vote meant less. I was wrong, of course, but it took my participation this year to get me to understand how nice it is to keep up with the threads and share the builders' ups and downs.

I may not build another one in a future Challenge, but I'll be following along and voting every year now.

Hi y'all! Thanks everyone for making me want to build a guitar. Especially my hubby, watching him turn a piece of wood and some components into a geetar was awesome and it was awesome to see everyone else's wood turn into something awesome.

I really want to try. My hubby doesn't know yet but it must be an awesome feeling to create something so beautiful!

I'm sure that the thought that there is no way this thing is going to hold together or work was bait to watch the build.....:-).

Dude, hit the nail on the head... no one cares who wins when you're watching GP motorcycle. You just hope to see someone wipe out and walk away.

edit; I wasn't hoping for it to go boing, but we were all wondering.

I thought about how can the neck hold together, but those laminated beams seem to do a good job of it.

I know i'm kinda new here and never got to see how previous build challenges played out but I think its unfortunate that any builder among us should feel compelled to defend their build here on this thread.

No argument from me on that.

Dude, hit the nail on the head... no one cares who wins when you're watching GP motorcycle. You just hope to see someone wipe out and walk away.

Speak for yourself please, you certainly don't speak for me when you say that... I've seen enough crashes.

EDIT: That came out more preachy than I intended... I'm just sayin', I've seen too many crashes as it is. And probably should admit there is some fascination there with wondering if a popsicle stick guitar will hold together... :wink:

What a challenge it has been. I'm truly honored and amazed that i got ant votes at all with all of the great builds that took place this year. I shore didn't expect any, I really only entered to make myself get over the fear of building a neck. There may have been more nice builds in the last two months then I'd ever seen in one place. Kudos to everyone that entered. I'd be willing to bet that the talent pool around here is deeper than anywhere else out there. It truly makes me proud to take part and be associated with the challenge and TDPRI in general. I can't wait until my skills reach the level of some of you guys. As far as the vids go they are what they are and people are going to make their decisions on whatever they want. Mine was awful, recorded 3 in the morning very quickly with a sleeping kid near by so the amp could barely be turned on and still needing to pack for a week of work out of town in 2 more hours. But it shows it works as the rules say it should and that was all I cared about. The fact that just one other person could appreciate and picked my build made it all worth it to me.

I'm sure that the thought that there is no way this thing is going to hold together or work was bait to watch the build.....:-).

I think the popsicle stick caster would have looked cool with a sunburst so that the sticks were still visible like woodgrain in the amber center. I had no doubt you would make it work... glue is stronger than the wood anyway. I had a 1970's japanese guitar that the neck was made from about a hundred real thin pieces of wood laminated together.

I think one needs to come up with something unique if you want votes. Otherwise you're just building a typical Telecaster and we've seen that before.

Perhaps future challenges need more than one category. Typical and unique.

Actually Jack 2009, 2010, 2011 and 2012 winners were all copies of guitars that already existed and there was no ground breaking, unique or epiphany of design in any of them. The concrete caster and the popsicle stick caster are more unique than any on the last four winners if that is the expected criteria.

2009 was a black esquire, not a new design or finish.

2010 was your skeleton guitar and the second one you made that was patterned after a previously made custom shop strat. http://www.tdpri.com/forum/telecaster-discussion-forum/149158-jack-wells-should-sue.html#post1686862

2011 was plexiglass and that kind of body had been done as well... Fender made a neck from lucite or plexiglass in the 50's. http://www.strat-talk.com/forum/non-fender-s-type-guitar-forum/28258-could-interesting-start-project-somebody.html#post174956

2012 Kwerk may have an original finish there... I don't remember seeing anything covered in a blueprint like that before but the guitar is no different than any typical standard tele.


Before anyone gets all weewee'd out at me
I am just responding to Jack to point out that all these designs existed and were not unheard of.... with the possible exception of Kwerk's finish design.

Wow!! Thanks to the folks that voted for me too! I'm stoked. I really learned a lot from this years build, watching the threads that others were putting up. There are really some great builders on this site. I feel very blessed to be a part of this challenge and site. :) :) Thank ya'll again. :) :) :) :)

Actually Jack 2009, 2010, 2011 and 2012 winners were all copies of guitars that already existed and there was no ground breaking, unique or epiphany of design in any of them.

unique may not be the best term...not sure there is much of anything anymore in guitar design that is truly "groundbreaking," just stuff that the average DIY'er hasn't ever tried.

typical vs. atypical may have been a better description...... but I still like everyone being in the same boat...
splitting hairs is never an easy job

Mike Simpson ........... it looks like we may have been educated with different definitions of the term unique. When I look at the higher vote getters in this year's challenge and all the past challenges I find something unique about them. By unique, I don't mean something that's never been done before but something that sets them apart from the rest of the competition.

First of all, we're restricted to building a Telecaster style guitar so they're all going to be somewhat similar.

Let's look at last year's challenge winner. The body, neck and some of the hardware were crafted from acrylic and finished superbly. I'd say that made it unique when compared to all the ash, maple and rosewood entries.

I'd say several entries in this year's competition really showed exceptional creativity, imagination and craftsmanship and pushed the envelope on guitar building.

dilbone ........ you're right, maybe "unique" may not have been the best term. I like your "typical and atypical". Too bad my limited vocabulary didn't come up with that.

I have an opinion and I'm putting the disclaimer right up front. You all can disagree if you want.

I think no matter what the mods set up for voting, the members that vote will have their own criteria. Some voted for the guitars they would like to own. Some voted for the buidls they thought challenged the builder the most. Some voted for the most 'unique', 'atypical', out of the box, crazy, etc. Some might have voted for their favorite color! And I'm sure there is some hero worship that would attract votes for a partscaster. I was suprised to see some really, really nice guitars get very few votes. I think that just shows the overall quality of all the builders.

My point is, each person will think they know the winner, but I don't think we ever will. Not to take anything away from the winners - they were fabulous instruments! I guess you could get some bragging rights for the final vote count, but to be honest, I have never seen anyone gloat on this forum.

Group Hug?

Looking forward to next year.... I think....

A pat on the back for RogerC. 45000 views is pretty outstanding in my book. Congrats on that win.

Thank you again to all that supported my project.

hehe Thanks, Marty. I actually beat Scatter Lee on views. I do count that as a victory :razz:

I do appreciate everyone who followed along with my build. The fact that I had so many people interested in what I was doing really floors me.

Congrats to all the builders. A really excellent and creative bunch! Also a little issue I've noticed; The percentage column on this page adds up to over 495% according to my calcs, and the total nr votes is 1660. Total reported voters is 635, so we should be seeing 1905 votes total. Can someone check my figures here?

We could try to seperate the guitar builds into catagories, which would allow for several groups of threads vs one huge generic group. From reading the posts I believe I see a trend toward grouping the builders rather than the guitar. For ex: Novice, Amateur, Pro-AM and Pro.

Also, the idea of a primary voting to sort out some of the best and then a regular voting to determine a winner is pretty good I think.

The threads do become tedious to read with comments, Possibly we could have a ~Comments Thread~ ex: ~PapaLions 2013 Build Comments~ and reserve the Primary thread ~PapaLions 2013 Build~ for post entries only from the builder.

Limiting design, raw materials, or technique is counterproductive. Build from any material using any technique allows for the most diversity of ideas. Free format. The thought of deliberately making the rules more difficult, for ex: wind your own pups. with a point to reduce the number of builds is artificial. A better way to go is to reward with votes those builders who choose to embrace a more difficult build. And, there are several ways for the builder to do that in an impressive way without arbitrary rules.

This would include the method the builder uses to describe his build and present his final product. The video is used now to assure the voter that the guitar is operable, not to show the builders ability to play. But, if a fella plays well, and can be creative with the video all the better. For ex: I watch well produced YouTubes, others I pass.

Finally the spirit of the build along with discovering another fellas talents lends a lot of credence to this Challenge. Cut it up too much and we'll loose the spontaneity.